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District and Community Nursing

District and community nursing teams provide an invaluable service to the individuals, families and communities which they serve; and are integral to the delivery of timely, quality, integrated health care. (RCN, 2014, A call to action). Use this guide to find information resources about district and community nursing including books, reports and journal articles.

Last updated: 04/02/2022

COVID-19

RCN: COVID-19 (coronovirus)

Key Resources

RCN District and Community Nursing Forum: Community nursing interview suggestions
Publication cover Royal College of Nursing (2019) Iron deficiency and anaemia in adults. London: RCN.
Publication cover The Queen’s Nursing Institute and Royal College of Nursing (2019) Outstanding models of district nursing report. London: QNI and RCN.
The Queen's Nursing Institute and The Queen's Nursing Institute Scotland (2015) The QNI/QNIS voluntary standards for district nurse education and practice. London: QNI.
The Queen's Nursing Institute (2020) The QNI standards of education and practice for nurses new to general practice nursing. London: QNI.
The Queen's Nursing Institute and The Queen's Nursing Institute Scotland (2018) The QNI/QNIS voluntary standards for community children’s nurse education and practice. London: QNI/QNIS.
The Queen's Nursing Institute (2021) Standards of education and practice for nurses new to care home nursing. London: QNI.
The Queen's Nursing Institute (2018) Nursing in the digital age: using technology to support patients in the home. London: QNI.
The Queen's Nursing Institute: Transition learning resources
NHS Scotland (2017) Paper 3 – the district nursing role in integrated community nursing teams. Scotland: NHS Scotland.
NHS England (2019) The NHS long term plan. (no place): NHS England.
Department of Health Northern Ireland (2018) A district nursing framework 2018-2026. (no place): DH.
We would like to thank the RCN District and Community Nursing member community for their input into the development of this subject guide.

Books

Book Cover Chilton S and Bain H (2017) A textbook of community nursing. 2nd edn. Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Book Cover Daaleman T P and Helton M R (2018) Chronic illness care: principles and practice. Cham: Springer. 
Book Cover DeMarco and Healey-Walsh (2020) Community and public health nursing: evidence for practice. International 3rd edn. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer.
Book Cover Loschiavo J (2020) Fast facts for the school nurse: what you need to know. 3rd edn. New York:  Springer. 
Book Cover Nicol J and Hollowood L (2019) Nursing adults with long term conditions. 3rd edn. London: Learning Matters. 
Book Cover Nicol J and Hollowood L (2019) Nursing adults with long term conditions. 3 edn. London: Learning Matters.
Book Cover Peate I and Stephens M (2020) Wound care at a glance. 2nd edn. Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell.
Peate, I. & Stephens, M. 2020. Wound care at a glance. 2 edn. Wiley Blackwell: Hoboken Peate and Stephens (2020) Wound care at a glances. 2nd edn. Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell.
Probst S (2021) Wound care nursing: a person-centred approach. 3rd edn. Edinburgh:  Elsevier. 
Book Cover Sinclair A, Dunning T, Manas L R and Munshi M N (2017) Diabetes in old age. 4th edn. Chichester:  Wiley Blackwell. 
Srikanth V and Arvanitakis Z (2018) Type 2 diabetes and dementia. Amsterdam: Academic Press. 
Wasserman M and Riopelle J (2017) Primary care for older adults: models and challenges. Cham: Springer. 

Book subject searches

Use these links to see details of books the RCN libraries hold on each topic.

Journal articles

Use these links for details of journal articles on each topic.

Journals

Journal of Community Health Nursing Journals of interest for district and community nursing. Use these links to see details of availability.

Explore

RCN District and Community Nursing Forum - Driving quality care at home.
  • This sketch animation was created by the RCN District Nursing Steering Group to highlight the work that District Nurses do.
    Watch video
RCN Events video on demand: Exploring quality of life for patients with leg ulcers: are we missing a vital piece of the jigsaw?
  • Dr Julie Green, Chair of the RCN District and Community Nursing Forum, focusses on person-centred care linked to chronic venous leg ulcer care. The principles presented can be applied to all person-centred care. Register online for free access to this video.
    Open RCNevents.tv

Nursing History Collection

The Nursing history collection generally consists of modern books about the history of nursing which can be borrowed by RCN members.
Baly M (1987) A history of the Queen’s Nursing Institute, London: Croom Helm.
Book Cover Cohen S (2018) The district nurse: a pictorial history. Barnsley: Pen and Sword History. 
Jordan P (2012) District nurse: my life as a nurse in the 1950s, London: Orion. Jordan P (2012) District nurse: my life as a nurse in the 1950s, London: Orion.
Morrison C (2017) Hebridean heroines: twentieth century Queen's Nurses (1940s-1970s), Laxay, Isle of Lewis: Islands Book Trust.

Special collections

Our Permanent Collection consists of nursing specific core items and rare items. Items are viewable by appointment at the RCN Library and Heritage Centre.
Baly M, Robottom B and Clark J (1987) District nursing (2nd edition), London: Heinemann.
Handbook for Queen's Nurses (1924), London: The Scientific Press.
Loane M (1905) Outlines of routine in district nursing, London: The Scientific Press.
Stocks M (1960) A hundred years of district nursing, London: Allen and Unwin.

Archives

The RCN Archive contains some of the most important collections dedicated to the history of the nursing profession in the UK, including the organisational records of the Queen Victoria's Institute of District Nursing Scottish branch which subsequently became the Queens Nursing Institute, Scotland (QNIS). Viewable in Edinburgh by appointment.
The RCN Archive contains over 600 recordings of individuals from across the nursing profession. Search "T/*" in the RefNo search field of the archive catalogue to browse the collection.

QNIS

The Queen's Nursing Institute Heritage website explores the 150 year history of district nursing in the UK.

This subject guide relates to:

District and Community Nursing Forum
RCN Library staff

Howard Chae

Editor of this guide

RCN Library and Archive staff

Upcoming events relating to this subject guide

  • 01 Jul 2022 Online

    An Introduction to Diabetes seminar

    The aims of this morning seminar are to give a basic understanding of diabetes and management, including Hypoglycaemia, Hyperglycaemia, and Carbohydrate awareness. This event is suitable for all members of the nursing team: registered nurses, Health Care Support Workers/ Health Care Assistants, and nursing students working in the NHS or Independent Health & Social Care Sector.

  • 15 Jul 2022 Online

    Adverse Childhood Experiences seminar

    This morning seminar aims to increase awareness of ACE’s and the related trauma and impact, immediate, short term and across a life time, develop skills to recognise ACE’s, and develop your knowledge of support services available. This event is suitable for all members of the nursing team: registered nurses, Health Care Support Workers/ Health Care Assistants, and nursing students working in the NHS or Independent Health & Social Care Sector.  

Page last updated - 04/02/2022

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